Amazon in advanced talks to buy stake in supermarket chain More: Reports

Amazon together with Goldman Sachs and Samara Capital will form a consortium for the acquisition.

Representational image: Reuters photo

New Delhi: E-commerce giant Amazon is in advanced talks to buy supermarket chain More, as per media reports.

Quoting un-named sources, both Economic Times and Mint have said that Amazon is looking to acquire upto 49 percent stake in the Aditya Birla Retail Ltd’s owned chain.

ET said that Amazon together with Goldman Sachs and Samara Capital (a private equity fund) will form a consortium for the acquisition. ET, quoting people in the know, has said that the enterprise valuation has been pegged between Rs 4,500-5,000 crore.

As per foreign investment norms, foreign companies are allowed to own 49 percent FDI in single brand retail under the automatic route and beyond through the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) route.

Amazon is aggressively ramping up selection for grocery on its platform and focussing on speedier delivery as it looks to consolidate its position in the segment against rivals like BigBasket and Grofers. A PTI report in May had said tht Amazon has committed USD 500 million to its food retail venture in India.

Grocery segment accounts for a significant portion of the unorganised retail segment in the country. With people becoming comfortable buying even milk and bread online, the online grocery segment is projected to witness a strong growth over the next few years in India.

According to a report by Franchise India, the online grocery market is expected to be Rs 2.7 billion market by 2018-19.

With PTI Inputs